Penance III - Sam's Guilt and Janet's Justice
by romansilence
Summary: Returning from a conference in Boston, Janet has to help a guilt-ridden Sam Carter to atone for her transgressions - Sequel to Penance and Penance II.


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Disclaimer: Copyright: The characters of the show "Stargate SG-1" don't belong to me but the lucky guys at Showtime Productions, Gekko et al. I just take them out to play. No copyright infringement is intended. No profit will be made. The story however is mine, archiving only with my permission.

Timeline, Takes place about two months after the end of my earlier story, "Penance II".

WARNING: In this story elements of a BDSM lifestyle are used to address the psychological problems of one of the characters; it works in the confines of this alternate universe story – and should stay there. It is not in any way or form a viable option outside of a fictional/virtual setting. BDSM between consenting adults is one thing, physical abuse in the name of or instead of psychotherapy is something completely different. Both should never be mixed.

Pairing: Sam/Janet (established relationship), rating: NC-17 (sex between women and BDSM, warning: there's spanking and whipping and anal sex and some sappiness).

Sequel to "Penance" and "Penance II".

Summary: Janet returns home from a conference in Boston and finds a guilt-ridden Sam in need of doing penance for her transgressions.

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 **Penance III**

 **Sam's Guilt and Janet's Justice**

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 **1\. Friday**

Janet asked herself why Sam had not picked her up at the airport as she had expected. Instead a young Marine had been waiting for her with a car and had practically fallen over himself trying to pull her carry-all for her, though it had not been necessary. He had told her that everyone was anxious to see her back in the infirmary on Monday and that she should enjoy her weekend off. Sam, Janet decided, was probably still at the mountain, in her lab running an experiment even the other on-base scientists would have trouble to understand without a problem. She probably had completely forgotten about the time; it was already late afternoon and Sam would rush home guiltily as soon as she became aware that she once again had slipped in what Jack O'Neill called, her nerd space. Janet answered that she only had been gone for a few days to attend the virology conference in Boston she had missed last year and that things could possibly not have been so wild that her presence would have been sorely missed and that someone would have told her on the phone that she was needed at home. The young Marine answered shyly that without her the infirmary was just not the same.

Turning into their driveway he had told her that Major Carter was probably at home and waiting for her return. He unloaded her Carry-all and her laptop bag and left her at the front door on the porch after he had made sure that she had her keys with her. Knowing her beloved wife and submissive that new information left only one possible explanation. During the five days of her absence Sam had somehow broken one or more of their rules and now felt extremely guilty about her actions, thinking that she did not deserve to greet her Top / Mistress at the airport as if nothing had happened. Janet opened the door and though she already had a pretty good idea where she would find her beloved she still checked every room on the ground floor of their house. Then she went upstairs, bypassing Cassie's room and the door to the bathroom Janet entered their bedroom.

As expected, she found Sam kneeling in the corner next to the bed. Her knees were almost shoulder wide apart and her legs crossed at the ankles. Her hands were resting on top of her head with the palms up and her arms were shaking with the effort to hold her position. If she had needed proof that would have been a sure indicator that Sam had been in this position for quite some time probably more than half an hour. Janet knew of other bottoms who tried to fool their Tops by just pretending to be sorry for their actions. Sam's feelings of guilt on the other hand tended to grow out of proportion to the severity of her transgressions. Left to her own devices she would usually proscribe a more severe punishment to help her atone and wash away her guilt, than Janet felt comfortable administering. Sam was wearing her collar, wrist and ankle cuffs and her back was painted with numerous fresh lash marks, indicating a recent punishment at the base.

Janet stepped closer to the silently kneeling, perfectly sculpted body of her wife, but before she reached her Sam turned around and stretched out on the floor. She did not look up and she didn't say anything. Instead she pushed herself forward until she could reach the tip of Janet's dust powdered shoes and kissed them gently.

"Hallo, Sam-mine. Get up and greet me properly I missed you so much while I was gone. I expect at least a hug and some kisses, and an explanation what happened on base that had you punished." Janet hoped that greeting her beloved by her first name would lighten her mood; but Sam flinched as if she had just been unexpectedly hit by an especially vicious blow from a single tail whip. She froze for a moment; then she pushed herself up until she was once again on her knees, put her hands in her neck with the fingers intertwined and said softly without making visual contact.

"I'm not worthy to touch you that way, Ma'am. I'm not worthy to be allowed to touch you in any way, Ma'am. I'm not even worthy to drink in your beauty with my eyes. I have been very bad while you were gone, very disobedient and naughty. My punishment should be hard and exemplary, Ma'am."

"Don't you think that, as your Top, your Dominant, it's for me to decide what you deserve or not? If you are worthy of touching me and looking at me or not? And I want you to get up and give me a proper welcome-home-kiss, followed by an explanation about your recent punishment at the mountain and then we'll deal with your other transgressions and I will decide how severe they really were, Airman."

"Thank you, Ma'am. You're very generous to your unworthy bottom." Sam stood up but kept her hands in her neck and her elbows at the side until she stood right in front of Janet. She then put her hands on Janet's hips, tentative and possessive at once, bent down and found Janet's lips with her own. At first the touch of her lips was soft and cautious but when Janet parted her lips, Sam immediately started exploring her mouth; slowly and thoroughly as if she were doing it for the first or last time. Sam pulled Janet closer and let her right hand roam all over the doctor's back while her left hand began to caress her buttocks.

Janet was not passive or unresponsive. She opened her mouth wider and started an exploration of her own; surprisingly their mutual exploration did not turn into a fight for dominance; it was a sharing of equals and just the welcome Janet wanted and needed after five nights and almost six days away from her beloved submissive. When her hands which had rested on Sam's well-formed behind started to explore the blonde's back She was already too aroused to feel the welts under her fingertips and Sam was too much in a haze at the pleasure of feeling Janet pressed against her body that the pain on her back, now intensified by Janet's touch did not even register as pain. Eventually they had to break the kiss to breathe. They were both breathing hard and felt slightly dizzy from the kiss.

Janet was first to recover, "And now, Major Carter, tell me about your back."

Sam tried to step back to get down on her knees again, but Janet held her and didn't allow the retreat.

"Look at me, Airman, and don't move anything but your mouth unless I tell you to do so."

Their roles once again clearly established, Sam began to talk, "It all began at around 13h30 this day. I was in the commissary for lunch when Colonel O'Neill came in with a group of visitors. They were not in uniform but some of them held themselves at least as if they had been military at one point in their lives. The Colonel walked over to my table in a straight line as if he had been looking for me. I got up and saluted, to make a good impression on our visitors and the Colonel ordered me to finally get around to writing his last three mission reports. He said, 'General Hammond has already extended my deadline and I will not let him wait any longer. So, eat faster and let those fingers of yours dance over the keyboard. The General needs them by 1600 today.' I refused. I told him that writing those mission reports was part of his duties as leader of SG-1 and General Hammond's Second-in-Command and that doing his work for him was certainly not part of my duties as an Officer. I also told him that he was living proof that General Hammond was not the kind of commanding officer who tried to pawn off his own duties to his Second-in-Command.

"One of the visitors objected to my choice of words and demanded that I be punished for impertinence. O'Neill repeated his order and I still refused. He then told me that I left him no other choice but to punish me for impertinence and insubordination. He ordered me to follow him and I did. He led us to one of the gyms and ordered me to remove my shirt and bra. He told me to step up to the stocks and closed them over my neck and wrists. He stepped over to the console and entered my sentence: eighteen strokes with a twenty-tailed flogger on the bare back for insubordination and after that two hours in the stocks for impertinence. As per protocol he asked me if I wanted to try to object to the sentence or found it too hard. I just shock my head as best as I could.

"I heard him walk over to the implement cabinet, open it and select a flogger. He returned and ordered me to count. The first stroke fell and it hurt more than I had anticipated, but I counted like a good little soldier. The Colonel always waited long enough between strokes for the pain to flare up to its fullest, so there was no mistaking the number of strokes. When he was done even shallow breathing hurt but I refused to give my public the satisfaction to see me cry or hear me cry out. He ordered me to suffer my sentence in the stocks in silence and left. Two men of his group did not want to follow him. I guess they saw it as a good opportunity to fondle me or to test my reaction to someone touching the marks on my back but before they could come to a decision, I felt Teal'c's presence next to me. One look at him and they decided that it would be a wise decision to find the others and join them for the rest of the tour.

"With Teal'c next to me the two hours passed quietly and relatively quick and I had a chance to puzzle out why I had deliberately provoked my commanding officer. I could not have followed his order even if I had wanted to do so, because I had already sent the mission reports to General Hammond's in-box before I had left for the base in the morning."

"Then why did you not tell him so, instead of provoking a punishment and a note in your record? You must have had a valid reason, unless you only provoked him because you thought being punished on base would make you feel less guilty about the broken house rules. Am I right?"

"Yes and no, Ma'am. Yes, the hope of getting rid of part of my guilt did play a minor role, but it was not the deciding factor. I knew that it would not help. It was a knee-jerk reaction to Jack ordering me to write his report. He usually either asks me to do it or I just do it on my own. It's not a big deal, usually. And it would not have been this time, had he not ordered me to do it. That made my hackles rise and provoked me into disobeying.

"When the two hours were up, the Colonel returned and Teal'c removed the restraints. I got on my knees and thanked him as the regulations demand, and I thanked Teal'c for his protection. I expected that he now would send me back to work. Instead he put a towel around my shoulders and over my back and escorted me to the infirmary. Alison put some disinfectant and an anti-inflammatory balm on my back and O'Neill sent me home. He also told me that General Hammond had expunged the record of my punishment from my personnel file after he had 'found' 'O'Neill's'' mission reports on his computer. When I came home I found a note in the kitchen, from Cassie. It said that she would spend the night at Sharon's house and that she was sorry to miss your return but that she would be back for a late breakfast."

"And now, Ma'am, let me tell you about the things that really deserve punishment." In retelling her adventures at the base, Sam had apparently gained some confidence, but as much as she wanted to make love to her wife, Janet could not let her duties as Sam's Top slide in favor of her pleasure.

"Well, Airman Carter, if a member of my staff had talked to me like you did to Colonel O'Neill I would have made sure that they had their mouths washed out with the most vile tasting soap in the infirmary at least three times a day. You just got lucky that Jack has a soft spot for you and thus a hard time to punish you."

Sam looked down at that, took a couple of steps back, and got on her knees. Her knees were spread as wide as possible and her hands rested on top of her knees with the palms facing the ceiling. She raised her gaze just high enough to be able to see Janet's ankles and asked, "Ma'am will you now punish me for having badmouthed my CO?"

"You already have been punished by two hours in the stocks. Do you think you need more punishment, Sammy? Teal'c was standing guard over you; so, it was more a question of passing the time than having to control your temper while being helplessly bound and ordered to stay quiet. Do you think that I should give you the punishment Jack saw not fit to give to you?"

"I do not know, Ma'am. It's not for me to decide, but I admit that I do not feel particularly guilty about my words to the Colonel and considering the punishments I still have coming for the transgressions for which I feel guilty, I hope that you might let it go for once. I promise not to let it happen again any time soon."

"Nice words, airman. I'll think about it, and now list your other transgressions , not by severity but in sequence of having committed them."

"Ma'am, yes, Ma'am. I wore shoes in the house. I sat on the couch without permission. I wore shoes in house again. I sat on the couch a second time. I forgot my duty to you and used the couch again. And yesterday I was 46 minutes late in picking up Cassie at Karen's house, but I only became aware that I was late when I arrived there. Cassie tried to make me believe that I had the time wrong and was 14 minutes early, not 46 minutes late but her bag was packed and she was already wearing her coat. To be on the safe side I checked the calendar in my laptop and it clearly said 1900 hours, not 1946. Considering that my last punishment for having been late was only ten days before yesterday; it has to be considered a repeat offence and the punishment has to be doubled."

"Was there anything else, airman?" Janet asked in a carefully neutral voice.

"Ma'am, no, Ma'am. Nothing you do not already know."

"Return to your corner, airman, while I think about how much and what kind of punishment your transgressions warrant."

Sam obeyed without a word or hesitation and Janet left the room. She knew that but for the house being on fire or another emergency Sam would not break her position even for a moment, regardless of how long it would take her to decide on the blonde's punishment. It would be easy to simply give Sam the harsh beatings experience told Janet Sam thought she deserved. The corporal punishment Sam would make herself suffer if she had not promised to never try that again years ago and if it would bring her what she needed: to assuage her guilt. And Sam Carter never broke a promise if she could help it. In the end coming to a decision had not been as difficult as she had feared and Janet returned to the bedroom about fifteen minutes after she had left.

Sam's posture stiffened when she heard the door behind her being opened and closed. As expected she had her ankles crossed and her hands on top of her head with the palms up. Janet stepped behind her and pulled her against her front. She also took her hands from her head and guided her to her side. Only then did the beautiful body in front of her relax incrementally.

Janet left her again. She took the chair standing in front of the vanity, turned it around and sat down; then she ordered Sam to once again take her report position. Sam obeyed but kept her gaze on the floor.

"Airman Carter, I'm sure that you have already thought long and hard how you would punish yourself if it were for you to decide. And I want you to look at me while you tell me all about it."

Sam looked up as ordered but she did not look directly at Janet. It was more as if she was just looking in her direction but not at her.

"Ma'am, yes, Ma'am. For having used the couch without permission I should be made to wear a butt plug for forty-five hours, fifteen hours for every transgression. The plug should be removed when I'm at the base. During the night when I'm asleep every hour should only count as thirty minutes. Every time the plug is removed to allow me to go to the toilette or to go to work, the new plug inserted after that should be at least one size bigger than the one before. I propose that we should start right now with a Size nine plug. I also propose that after every fifteen hour interval I should receive a harsh pussy whipping: at least eighteen strokes with the riding crop on the pussy lips and clitoris and another eighteen with a flogger on the insides if my right and left thigh."

Sam turned her head to look at Janet's expression, to see if her words had made an impression on Janet but her Top's face was a neutral mask.

"Go on, airman, there are still two more items to clear up."

"Ma'am, yes, Ma'am. To atone for having worn shoes in the house twice I would make walking itself a painful experience by having the soles of my feet beaten twice. I would use an extra thick cane, almost a baton to achieve the optimum effect and administer no less than 12 strokes every session, maybe eighteen strokes would be more memorable.

"The punishment for having been late should be easy. Forty-six strokes for having been late and one extra as a reminder to do better the next time. Since this was a repeat offence there has to be another session of forty-seven strokes, administered after an appropriate time interval. For the first session I would use a wooden paddle with no less than five holes drilled in its surface and for the second session, to make it memorable I would use either the carbon fibre or the fibre glass cane. Until the punishment is over I should also be ordered to sleep in the walk-in-closet on the floor and not be allowed in my Top's bed or even on a mattress at the foot of the bed."

"Those are impressive ideas, airman, but it is not what I've decided to do. Yes, for having used the couch three times you will have to wear a butt plug but only for a total of thirty hours. That makes ten hours for every transgression. We will start with a Size seven plug and not go higher than a size nine; and there will be no pussy whipping of any kind instead you will masturbate for me every morning and every evening without being allowed release.

"For having worn shoes in the house you will not have the soles of your feet beaten, a bastinado is an ancient form of torture and I do not condone of torture in my house. You will instead have two three hours long training sessions with high heels. I know you could argue that having to wear high heels for six hours is torture, but it serves a purpose because it will teach you to feel more at ease when wearing something else but boots, and running shoes.

"And for having been late you will receive two spankings. You will get the first tomorrow morning before you go to the base to check on your experiments. I give you three hours to do that and come back home, not one minute more. I will give you the second spanking some time on Sunday, but I will only then decide what kind of spanking you will receive and which if any implement I will use. And, Airman Carter, none of this is negotiable. And now I want you to go to the bathroom and use the toilet; I'll order us something to eat. Dismissed."

At that last harshly spoken order, Sam got up and went to the bathroom as ordered. Except for the decision about the high heels her Top /her Mistress, as she thought of Janet, had been lenient with her. She had, however no doubt that the high heel training would serve its purpose and she would not forget to remove her shoes before entering the house any time soon again. It also might have the side effect that the next time she had to wear her dress uniform complete with three or four inch regulation heels she might not feel as awkward and out of her depths as she usually did. Yes, Janet knew better what she needed and what was good for her than she did. Her solution would only have given her pain without teaching her anything. Janet's served more than one purpose.

Sam finished her business and got dressed in yoga pants and a wide sweatshirt, hoping that the soft fabric would not irritate the welts on her back. She added a pair of socks and joined Janet in the kitchen. Janet gave her a critical once over and ordered her to return to the bedroom. She was to pull down the pants and bend over the foot rest of the bed and wait for her. She also told her that the shirt and socks could stay on. Sam obeyed without question but she gave Janet a gentle hug before she returned to their bedroom.

Janet did not let her wait for long, but did not pay her any attention when she came in. She went directly to their walk-in-closet and returned with a butt plug and a crotch harness. She put the toys on the mattress and straightened the lower parts of Sam's sweatshirt which had slipped downwards and revealed half of the marks on her back. She knew that Sam had provoked the punishment and had thus amply deserved it, but she still wished that she had been there to keep her beloved from saying the things she did. Janet was a healer at heart; she hated seeing Sam in pain, even if it was well deserved and if she was the one giving it to her. She also did not like to cause her discomfort and having to wear a butt plug for thirty hours over the next few days would not be comfortable, but she deserved it by her actions.

Janet let her hands glide over the smooth, pale, unblemished skin of Sam's buttocks while she let her mind wander. It had been almost six weeks since they had finished the two weeks of daily maintenance spankings. Sam had beautifully pleaded with her top to continue with the daily discipline sessions, but Janet had refused her. After careful consideration she had agreed to one maintenance session a week when Sam was on Earth. During that time Sam had been the perfect Bottom. She had only been late twice and with almost a month between offences and she had not done anything else to break their rules. Janet was proud of her beloved submissive.

Janet managed to coat the fingers of her right hand with lube without stopping her ministrations to Sam butt cheeks. Sam visibly enjoyed the gentle attentions but she was not completely relaxed. She knew it was time to insert the butt plug. She also knew that Janet would take her time and be as gentle as possible by using generous amounts of lubrication instead of forcing the plug in without regard to her bottom's feelings like some Tops would do.

Sam's heart skipped a beat when she felt Janet's index finger at her rear entrance. It slipped in easily and Sam relaxed when she heard Janet's praise, "Well, done, my Sammy. You're doing fine, don't tense up and putting your new friend in will be easy."

Sam stayed calm when Janet added a second and then a third finger, but she could not help the gasp that passed her lips when Janet removed her fingers and replaced them immediately with the relatively hard plug. She stayed in position until Janet had threaded the chain hanging from the waistband of the crotch harness through the eyelet at the base of the butt plug and pulled the end back up to the waistband again where she fastened it with a small padlock. She then ordered Sam to get up, restore her clothing and come down to the kitchen."

When Sam entered the kitchen there was no sign of Janet, but she heard water running in the small downstairs bathroom. Janet's wallet was on the table and the flyer of the Algerian restaurant where she had ordered their dinner. Sam was not yet used to the intruder in her entrails and jumped up moments after she had sat down. Some strange nervous energy inside wanted her to pace, but she did not want that urge to win; so, she knelt down with her knees spread slightly and most of her weight resting on her heels and not on her buttocks like on the chair. After what seemed only a few minutes the doorbell rang. Sam got up, took the wallet and paid the delivery girl. She put their order on the table and knocked on the bathroom door to call Janet. Janet opened the door wearing fluffy slippers, sweat pants and her favorite threadbare t-shirt. Sam swallowed hard at seeing the more then hint of slightly tanned neckline.

"Dinner has arrived, Janet. We can eat if you want to."

"Great, I'm starving. They served something they called food on the flight, but at closer inspection I came to the decision that it could not be considered edible; though the obese guy on the other side of the aisle did not find it in any way despicable. I ended up giving my tray to him to keep him from staring at me. And for a while it worked."

"My poor baby, being ogled by some overweight male bimbo. The next time you have a conference to attend I'll get permission from General Hammond to fly you in an X-302 or we'll use the Prometheus. Then you'll only have to cope with me staring at you. And during the conference I'll sit quietly in the last row and try not to fall asleep during the lectures of the others. I'll only have eyes and ears for you."

"Oh, what a hardship, Major Carter. The way the pilot seats in the 302s are set up it will be me staring at you the whole time and not the other way round. Then you'll just have to accept that I'll spend the whole flight staring at your neck and playing with your hair. Though flying a 302 to a medical conference will probably send a whole plethora of Alien conspiracy nuts scurrying from their hiding places and coming up with the strangest, most outlandish ideas, and now let's eat, before it gets cold."

They sat down and ate and this time Sam did not jump up when the plug was pushed deeper inside from her weight. She did not show her discomfort but Janet still knew and smiled at her encouragingly. "You're doing fine, Sammy. You're very brave."

After dinner Janet chose a DVD from their collection while Sam cleaned up the kitchen. Her choice fell on an old Comedy with Cary Grant and Tony Curtis called "Operation Petticoat". They had not watched it in a couple of years and it had never failed to make them both laugh.

Janet sat down at one end of the couch and told Sam to snuggle down next to her and bring a blanket for them.

Janet fell asleep shortly after the women had come on board. Sam felt a pang in her heart when Janet's fingers which had played with her nipples suddenly stopped. Sam turned her head from the screen. Janet's head had fallen back and her lips were open just a tiny bit. Sam knew from experience that now it would not take long for Janet to start snoring softly. Instead of being annoyed by it as she was by Colonel O'Neill's obnoxiously loud snoring, Sam found the noises her beloved Mistress made soothing and endearing. Expectedly, before the credits had finished rolling Sam had joined her beloved in sleep.

Janet woke up with Sam's head resting on her lap. Sam was still sleeping and Janet deactivated the TV and the DVD player with the multi purpose remote and resumed her attentions to Sam's nipples which had gone soft in the time she had been in dreamland. They did not stay that way for long but sprang to attention as if they had waited for Janet to once again pay attention to them. Janet pulled the blanket off and Sam opened her eyes, as usual wide awake and alert without any lingering sleepiness. Janet bent down and kissed her, taking the lead from the first moment on. Sam abandoned herself to Janet's explorative kiss. She did not want it to end. She did not want to get up. Moving would only remind her of the intruder embedded deep inside of her. Here on the couch with Janet right next to her she had almost forgotten about the plug and why she was wearing it. Sam loved it to be kissed like that, but unfortunately even those kisses had eventually to end.

"It's time to go to bed, sweetie, but before we do that we can't forget that you'll still have to give me a show. Am I right, Sam-mine?"

"Yes, Janet, I remember, masturbating in the morning and in the evening without being allowed to come, Ma'am."

Sam sat up reluctantly and tried not to grimace at the movement of the intruder inside of her. Her time of just laying back to enjoy was apparently over. They went upstairs and Janet ordered Sam to strip before coming in the bedroom, including the socks. Most times Janet allowed Sam to keep the socks to avoid being confronted by the blonde's perpetually cold feet later in bed. Sam was still wearing her collar, the wrist and ankle cuffs and of course the crotch harness. Janet put a CD in the small player they kept next to Sam's nightstand. She ordered Sam to dance for her, to touch herself and to give her a good show when she took off the collar and cuffs.

Sam moved to the dulcet voice of Nina Simone singing of love lost and found. Had anyone else ordered her to do this she would have refused regardless of the consequences. She was just too self-conscious to expose herself like this for anyone else but her beloved Mistress. And even Janet had had to patiently coax her not to think about what Janet may think seeing her tough, no nonsense Major move like a sensual harem's dancer. Janet's appreciative glance banned her self-consciousness into non existence and she moved like the whole world consisted only of her and Janet; and in those minutes it did, usually. That day it took her the first two songs to give herself over to the enchanting music. The butt plug made it difficult to forget about her punishment and her transgressions but finally she managed to put it out of her mind like she ignored the pain when being punished on base or when SG-1 once again ended up being the prisoners of one Goa'uld or the other. With Janet she no longer tried to hide her feelings; the doctor had the eerie ability to see through her masks like no one did, not even General Hammond, the man who knew her best.

Sam put the cuffs and her collar neatly at the side of the bed, right next to Janet's still slipper clad feet. Janet pulled her down next to her, "That was very nice, sweetie, very sexy. And now I want to see you touch those luscious globes of yours and those beautiful, plumb pussy lips as if you mean it. I want to see you tremble with need, knowing that there will be no release for you any time soon. Sam looked into her Mistress' deep brown eyes and stretched out over the whole width of the bed. She led her hands glide over her upper torso but did not linger. Instead she reached down along her thighs, barely touching them. She let her fingers slide up to her waist, teased herself by letting her right index finger circle around her belly button. Her skin broke out in goose pebbles at the almost touch.

"Go on, sweetie, you're driving me crazy, drawing it out like that."

"Is that an order, Ma'am?" Sam asked with mischievous grin.

"Cheeky, Airman, cheeky.

"No, it's not an order, Sam-mine. I'll just have to remind you that you're not allowed to come, don't push yourself too far."

"Ma'am, yes, Ma'am. I'll try." Despite the military form of the address, Sam's answer sounded rather long suffering and resigned.

"Trying is not enough, Airman. You better succeed. I'm not in the mood having to come up with another punishment."

"Yes, Janet, I will not disappoint you again."

"That's my good girl, my good little soldier."

Sam continued to tease herself. She did not go faster. It took her almost 10 minutes until she finally touched her breasts and nipples. She rolled them between thumb and index finger. Her heels were propped up at the edge of the bed. She instinctively pushed herself upwards, raising her hips from the mattress and was not even aware of the pain radiating from her back. Her nipples were so hard they hurt and Sam groaned.

At that moment Janet grabbed her wrists and guided them down to the mattress, at her sides. "That's enough, my Sam. I have something better for you to do. Looking at you has made me horny. I want you to do something about that, sweetie, get down from the bed and make me come."

Sam did not need a second invitation. She slid from the bed and knelt between Janet's legs, then she made visual contact and asked, "Ma'am, would you please get up for a moment to make it easier for me to remove your sweatpants?"

"It's alright, sweetie, I'll do it. Just wait a moment." Janet raised her hips and pushed her pants down, first past her hips and then past her knees. She scooted a bit closer to the edge and pulled Sam between her thighs, though Sam did not need much pulling, she went willingly at the slightest touch. She could already smell Janet's arousal and smiled. She knew she was about to get a big dose of her favorite taste: her Mistress' juices.

It didn't take Sam long to get Janet to start squirming. She had one goal: to make Janet come and lap up all the juices offered to her. It was a taste of which she could never get enough; to her it was simply divine. Not one of her other lovers had ever tasted that good, that exceptionally. Sam was so focused on bringing Janet to an orgasm and keeping it going as long as she could; she didn't even mind that Janet held her head tight; something she normally did not like being done. When Janet was panting and begged her to stop Sam obeyed immediately but with great regret. She did not want to stop, but if her Mistress wanted her to stop, for the rest of the night or only for a few minutes, then stop she would.

"Scoot back a bit, Sam-mine. It's time for us to get some sleep. The alarm will ring at 06h00. I want you to get up and brush your teeth; then I want you to masturbate for me, tease yourself to the brink of coming but do not go one step further. We will remove the plug and you will go for your run. When you come back, you'll take a shower and I'll give you the first punishment spanking for your tardiness in picking up Cassie. After the spanking you may go to the base and check your experiments. You will be back at the latest three hours later, not more. Then you'll get to wear a fresh butt plug. Did I make myself clear? Airman Carter?"

"Yes, Ma'am, perfectly clear. Should I now consign myself to the floor of the walk-in closet?"

"No, Samantha. You'll sleep with me in the bed. I had to go without you for five nights though you were not off-world. I will not have that untenable situation continue in any way. I want to feel you right next to me in the night, holding me and in turn being held. Do you object, Sammy-mine?"

"I may be blonde, Janet, but I'm not stupid enough to refuse such a generous offer. I love being in bed with you. It's the next best thing to making you come or you allowing me to have an orgasm. I love you, Doctor Janet Fraiser, so much. You're so kind and generous, especially when I was bad and naughty and disobedient and don't deserve it."

"Luckily, it's for me to decide what you deserve or not, sweetie, and now come and join me."

Sam's bright, answering smile could have lit up the Christmas tree at Times Square. She climbed under the covers, but instead of lying on her back as she usually did, she stayed on her side and pulled Janet closer until she was resting with her head on Sam's arm. The air in the room was heavy with their arousal. And just as so many times before Sam was almostsure that her own unfulfilled needs would keep her awake for most of the night. She knew it wouldn't; it never had in the past. Janet was exhausted from her prolonged climax.

"I love you, sweetie," Janet whispered before she closed her eyes. "Sleep well, my love."

"I love you as well, my Janet. Sweet dreams, my Mistress, I know I will sleep well because I will dream of you."

"You know, you should not call me Mistress. But I'll let it go for tonight, Sam-mine. Good night."

"Good night, Janet, and thank you, Ma'am."

* * *

 **2\. Saturday**

Sam was already awake before the alarm clock chimed at 06h00, but she did not move. She did not even allow her breathing to change. She wanted to savor every last second comfortably ensconced in bed with the woman who owned her, heart, body and soul, the woman she loved and who miracle of miracles loved her back just as deeply. Feeling Janet in her arms was better than stepping through the Stargate, much better, but it would only last until Janet woke up.

The morning passed just as Janet had said it would. Sam returned from the shower and went to bend over the footrest of the bed, but Janet stopped her and took her in her arms, with one hand in her neck and the other caressing her buttocks. She maneuvered both of them over to the hardwood chair next to the vanity.

"Yes, sweetie, it's time for your punishment spanking, but I have decided that a solid spanking with the hairbrush will be enough to make you atone for your tardiness; that and a warm-up session with the hand, over my knees, not over or on the bed. Or do you object, Sam-mine?"

"No, Ma'am, I'm not that stupid, but you are very kind and lenient to your undeserving, naughty bottom."

"My prerogative, Airman."

Sam draped herself over Janet's lap. Her legs were touching the floor on one side and her hands and head on the other. Usually Janet started with caressing Sam's unmarked, unblemished butt cheeks, this morning she immediately began to spank her. Her strokes were hard and slow. After every stroke she waited for Sam to relax under her touch. When Sam's buttocks had turned into a vivid pink, Janet stopped and told her,

"It's time to face the hairbrush, sweetie. I want you to count and thank me after every forth stroke."

"Yes, Ma'am, thank you, Ma'am."

If Sam had thought that taking this over the knees spanking would be easy, she was greatly mistaken. Janet made every stroke count and optimized its impact by turning the brush every forth stoke from the back side to the brush side. The back of the hairbrush had the relief of a fairy on it and that usually left a clear pattern on her behind. The swats from the brush side, however, would obscure that pattern and over lay it with a plethora of tiny pinprick like marks.

After twenty-three strokes Janet told her that she was doing fine but that she should not try to block out the pain.

"No, Sammy, don't say anything. Just do it." The next stroke fell on Sam's left buttock with the back side down.

"Twenty-four. Thank you, Ma'am, and thank you for not letting me get away with trying to be the stoic soldier with you."

"You're welcome, Sammy."

After the spanking Janet allowed Sam to snuggle for a while then she made her dress in her blue BDUS and sent her off to the base. She was back two hours and 28 minutes later, a few minutes before Cassie returned from her sleepover for a late breakfast as she had said she would. It gave them just enough time to put another plug inside of Sam.

Cassie drank Coffee and ate some Cereal and told them that she needed to get a bit of sleep to be fresh for the rehearsal in the afternoon. She also told them that due to some burst pipes in the auditorium they would rehearse at the gym and that Sam's technical expertise thus would not be needed that day.

Janet told Sam that her car would benefit from a wash and a quick check-up and that she should consider it an order. Sam smiled and went to the garage. She gave Janet's car a wash, checked water, oil, tire pressure, spark plugs, and everything else a good mechanic would check when servicing a car and then did the same with her Indian though it would not have been necessary just yet.

When Cassie left for her rehearsal, Janet decided to proceed with the next part of her beloved Bottom's punishment. Sam looked like a deer caught in the headlights of a speeding car when Janet told her that it was time for her high-heel-training. Sam did not want to obey her Mistress' command but she did. She walked up to the bedroom, removed her clothes at the door and went into the furthest corner of their walk-in-closet where she had stashed her four and a half inch high cherry red high heels with the ankle straps. She put them on, Janet secured them with tiny padlocks at her ankles and gave her a few very specific orders on what to do.

Sam walked down the stairs and with every step she felt as if she would fall right on her face the next moment. That's why she held on to the banister. She felt extremely unstable on her feet but Janet had told her to walk slowly, hold her head straight and push her shoulders back. The first few steps she still felt wobbly. Then Sam intertwined her fingers behind her back and her confidence rose, but she did not become overconfident. Sam had learned her lesson when during an earlier training session she had been too cocky and had found herself face first on the living room floor. Janet had helped her up, and because she was a good person on top of being the best Mistress in the universe she had not laughed at Sam's misfortune.

Sam went to the front door, knelt down, touched the floor with her forehead and raised her torso back up again until she was on her knees. She repeated the bow four times, got up and went over to the door to the garage where she once again bowed down. After that she knelt in front of the door leading from the kitchen to the side porch and finally she did the same in front of the double door leading to the back yard. Sam made the circuit of all the doors leading out of the house five times. Getting down on her knees and back up again got easier every time, but it did not help the feeling of ridicule and absurdity at her actions. But it was not her place to worry about that.

Sam returned to the bedroom where Janet was lounging on the bed, ostensibly reading a book. She smiled at Sam when she came in and told her that her movements already looked a lot better. Janet pressed the button of their small CD player.

"Close your eyes and listen for a few moments. And then I want you to dance for me, give me a show and present those beautiful long legs of yours to their best advantage. Sweetie, I want you to be careful when you move; I don't want you to sprain an ankle or something like this."

Sam smiled when she recognized the introductory notes to one of her favorite Melissa Etheridge songs. Sam closed her eyes and started to sway to the music as soon as the rock star began to sing. Janet had put her book down; no book could be as engaging and fascinating as seeing her wife dance. It was always very special. When Sam lost herself in her work, in her 'nerd-space' as Jack O'Neill called it; she lost track of time, but there was always some tension running through her body. Her mind was always working a mile a minute even when she was just relaxing and tinkering with her bike. There were only two things during which she did not think about work or other scientific problems, when she was dancing and when she was making love to Janet.

The night before, moving to Nina Simone Sam had devoted a portion of her attention to masturbating, to teasing herself. At the moment she did not have to hold anything back. Janet had warned her to be careful but that had been more for her own peace of mind than because she thought Sam needed it. Sam needed to be careful with the heels when walking, not when she was dancing. When she was dancing she forgot everything around her. And she was moving in a way, with great grace and equilibrium she would never dare walk for fear of doing something wrong or making a fool of herself or looking ridiculous. From Janet's point of view, that fear was completely unfounded; Sam was too good of an athlete to ever look even something akin to ridiculous. Sam's body started to shine with sweat and Janet's heartbeat skipped a beat at the sexy sight. It was breathtaking; her Sam was breathtaking.

Janet turned the volume of the CD player down and sat up. She scooted over to the edge of the bed, took Sam's right hand and pulled her over to the bed. Sam tried to keep her balance but Janet made her land on her front, on the mattress. Sam looked a bit disoriented at having been stopped and asked, "Did I do anything wrong?"

"No, sweetie, what makes you think that? You were beautiful and perfect as usual. I was just starting to get a bit lonely all alone on the bed. The way you move; it's so beautiful, so inspiring, so sexy. It gave me all sorts of ideas. And one of them was to get those shoes off of you as soon as possible. I know the three hours of your punishment for wearing shoes in the house are not up yet. I know we only just passed the half-way point; and no, I will not forget about the rest of your punishment. We'll make up for the missed time on another occasion, maybe today, maybe we'll wait for tomorrow, maybe some other time. Don't worry, I will not let your transgressions go unpunished."

"Thank you, Janet. Do you have something specific in mind, or did you just want the pleasure of my company, Ma'am?"

"That and I want to feel your hands on my skin and to do that we will just have to remove those extremely cumbersome clothes, right, sweetie?"

"I'd love to, Janet. I love feeling your skin under my fingers. I love touching you in any way I can."

"Cassie said that she'll be back between half past six and seven and that she probably will be starving by then. While you were gone I prepared Irish stew for us, Sam. That leaves us a few hours to play. And I intend to use every minute to our advantage. – Please, walk over to the dresser and give me the keys to the ankle straps of your shoes. We'll get rid of them first and then you may undress me."

Sam did as Janet had said, or rather ordered. And they made love for the next few hours. Sam winced a few times when the intruder in her bowels moved too much or unexpectedly at their enthusiasm, but that did not stop them or even slow them down. She was too grateful that her Mistress allowed her sexual relief almost as often as she made Janet come. They were both exhausted and covered in sweat when Cassie called to tell them that she would not be home before eight or eight thirty and that they should eat without her.

Janet and Sam took a long shower, getting rid of the last bit of excess energy they could muster by playing under the spray. Sam set the table while Janet heated up their stew and they sat down to eat. They ate in companionable silence; so far, the afternoon and early evening had been perfect. Sam was thrilled that Janet had made her come numerous times and smiled down on her plate; even thinking about her Top's generosity made her libidinous again.

She tried to calm herself down by thinking about the rest of her punishment but that did not really work. Yes the hairbrush spanking in the morning had hurt. Using the bristle side of the hairbrush alternately to its back had made the spanking much harder to take than a normal hairbrush spanking; but in all it had not been half as hard or painful as a session under a paddle with holes would have been. Sam was thankful for Janet's moderation and wisdom.

Sam also did the math on the plug punishment: If they continued at the rate they were going at the moment she would be rid of the plug at around midday tomorrow. Sam was looking forward to that. She knew she deserved every single minute of her punishment and would have had to suffer through much more had Janet taken her up on her ideas. Luckily she had not. Luckily Janet always knew how much punishment Sam really needed to assuage her guilt. Luckily Janet most of the time did not listen to Sam's often times excessive suggestions. Luckily Janet knew her as well as she did.

After dinner they cleaned up the kitchen and Janet told Sam to get dressed in cargo pants with a colorful sweater and not to forget to put her heels back on. Sam sighed but went up the stairs without hesitation. She had hoped that she would have seen the last of the heels for the day; but Janet apparently had other plans.

When Sam cautiously walked down the stairs Janet told her that she had left a note for Cassie and that they now would go for a long walk.

"Don't look like a martyr about to be sacrificed, Sam-mine. Six hours in high heels is not that hard of a punishment. I know women who wear much higher heels than yours longer every day and no one orders them to do it. I know you're not like other women. You're special, you really are but that gives you more options than other women have. I just want you to exploit them fully, and that includes being able to wear high heels gracefully when the occasion calls for it.. And now let's go. We have not been to the park in a long time."

They walked side by side at a sedate pace, at first. The closer they came to the park the more confidence Sam gained. Yes, cherry red high heels did not go too well with cargo pants but still to Janet Sam looked sexy as hell. They made the circuit of the park, even sat on the swing Cassie had loved so much when she first had been introduced to the playground.

Sam stopped at their front door to remove her heels but Janet motioned for her to go inside. Cassie was on the couch watching TV. They greeted their daughter with a hug and went upstairs telling Cassie that they would call it an early night after she had told them about the rehearsal and that their teacher had called another session for the next evening at his house.

Upstairs Sam stripped and Janet opened the padlocks holding her ankle straps closed and allowed her to remove the shoes. Sam sat down on the floor, groaned and began to massage her feet. It didn't take the blonde long to get completely absorbed in her self-appointed task. Janet was on the bed and looked at her with a half gentle, half teasing smile on her face.

After a few minutes she asked, "Sweetie, don't you think that you're exaggerating just a little bit? What I asked of you tonight was not that hard, or was it, Airman?"

"No, Ma'am. You could have made me run an off-road obstacle course instead of taking me for a nice walk. Thank you for being so kind."

"It's not kindness, Sammy, it's love. Even when you do things that deserve to be punished and given the fact that seeing you bent over my knees or the footrest of the bed, seeing marks on your skin I put there is an incredible turn on for me I still hate giving you pain."

"Thank you, Ma'am. I am the luckiest person alive to have you as my Top, Janet, even though you do not allow me to call you what you are in my heart, my Mistress."

"Get up here on the bed with me and give me a show, Sammy. You know like no one else ever how to turn me on. I want you to touch yourself and I want you to start with your sides and then work your way up to your breasts. Focus all your love and attention on those beautiful globes and continue until they feel as if they're about to burst and you're ready to come, but of course you will not. It's part of your punishment."

"Yes, Ma'am, I understand. I am to tease myself but I'm not allowed to have an orgasm."

"That's right, Sam-mine. Now, get going, sweetie."

Sam did as ordered. If she had masturbated on her own accord, Sam would have closed her eyes and focused on the feeling of her hands on her skin, but with Janet so close by she wanted to see what her self-teasing touch did to her Mistress. Sam took her time but she did not have to wait long. Janet stretched out next to her and devoured her with her eyes; and soon, just looking was not enough for her. She needed to do her own touching. She stroked the outside of Sam's thighs and started to whisper endearments. Sam's ordered masturbation that way quickly turned into a make-out session. Without being ordered to do so, Sam turned her attention from her own torso to Janet's upper body. She found Janet's breasts much more enticing than her own. She wriggled herself in a position that allowed her to kiss and lick them. With her free arm, the one not weighed down by Janet's head, she reached over her beloved and pulled her closer.

They did not speak, they just played the other's body like a violin virtuoso would his instrument. They played and laughed and made love. When they extinguished the lights to sleep it was not even eleven o'clock at night. For reasons they could not explain both were exhausted and fell asleep quickly.

Three hours later Sam woke up from a cramp. Janet had her arms around her and it made her feel safe, but at the moment that was not enough. The roiling and churning in her guts hurt too much. She had to do something about it. Sam rolled to the side, careful not to dislodge Janet's arms. When she had her back to her Top, she pulled her legs up until she was in a fetal position. It worked for a bit, but it was not enough to allow her to fall asleep again. Instead it felt as if the pain was getting stronger by the minute. It started to consume her thoughts; she felt it more intensely with every breath and soon it felt like nothing she had ever experienced before.

She considered getting up to relieve herself, but that meant that she would have to remove the plug and prematurely end her punishment. She was not allowed to do that without her Top's permission. And the pain was not yet so bad that she considered waking up Janet. She could stand it until the alarm clock would chime in a few hours. She had to take it. She deserved the punishment.

Sam curled up tighter and that movement woke Janet. It didn't take Janet more than a few moments to become aware that Sam was also awake and that she was not feeling well.

"What's wrong, sweetie? You're in pain. How long have you been awake, suffering in silence? What's wrong?"

Sam cast a quick glance at the didital alrm clock on the night stand and answered, "Three hours, cramps! Toilet! Need to go. Hurts!"

"Of course, sweetie, pull the plug out and go. You should have woken me up hours ago, when it first started to hurt."

Sam got up but when she tried stretch to her full height, she cried in pain at a new cramp hitting her intestines. She still made it to the bathroom in record time. She used lube from the medicine cabinet to remove the plug and barely made it to the toilet in time.

When Sam returned to the bedroom holding lube, a crotch harness and a fresh butt plug, Janet was sitting up in bed, waiting for her.

"Hello, Sammy, are you feeling better now?"

"Yes, Ma'am, much better. Will you now insert another plug? There still is a punishment to complete."

"I am well aware of that, Airman. It's almost five in the morning now. When we went to sleep there where still about ten hours of your punishment left to go. You held out for another five and a half hours; that leaves four and a half hours to go. You have been very brave, suffering the cramps in silence. In my book that's payment enough for your transgressions. You are forgiven for using the couch without permission, Airman Carter."

"Yes, Ma'am, thank you, Ma'am. You are very kind. Now might not be a good time to point out that your math is about two hours or more off."

"I'm well aware of that, Sam-mine. It's pretty basic counting not calculus. But that does not change my decision. I have decided that you have amply paid for your transgressions on the couch. But do not count on my leniency when it comes to the rest of your punishments. I might yet come to the conclusion that six hours of high heel training might not be enough to pay for wearing shoes in the house."

"Yes, Ma'am, I understand. From where I stand that would only be fair and just."

"We'll see about that later, sweetie, and now let's go back to sleep. Morning will be here soon enough."

"Yes, Ma'am I would love to crawl back in your arms."

"Permission granted, Major Carter."

Sam climbed back under the covers. Janet deactivated the lights and they went back to sleep.

* * *

 **3\. Sunday**

Just like every morning when Sam was on Earth the alarm clock activated at 06h00. Sam opened her eyes, as usual instantly awake. She knew it was time to get up and go for her run. She raised her head to look out of the windows and saw the heavy rains falling behind the curtains. So, she deactivated the alarm clock and closed her eyes again. Janet, however, had other ideas.

"Hello, sweetie, good morning. It's time to get up. I know, it's not the ideal weather to go for a run, but if I remember right. There still should be a stationary bike stashed somewhere in the garden shed. It's either unpacking it or go to the base for your exercise and risk getting stuck with an 'emergency' they could have solved without you with a bit of thinking before going to you for help, because you are so conveniently on base on your weekend off. So, go and start unpacking."

"Ma'am, yes, Ma'am." The crispness of her response was not seconded by equal actions, but Sam stood up and put on some clothes fit to train on a stationary bike. Before she left for the garden shed she stopped in the garage and picked up a pair of scissors and a box cutter. At first she did not see the bike, but just as Janet had said it was tucked away in the corner furthest from the door.

It took Sam twenty minutes to peel the cardio trainer out of its plastic and card board cocoon. She put a battery in the display, checked the time on her wrist watch – it was 06h45 -, sat down and started to move the pedals. Janet had not given her a specific time when she wanted her to come back; So, Sam decided to really test her speed and endurance and only return to the house when Janet called her back. A few minutes after 08h00 Janet told her that breakfast would be ready soon and that she should come in now and take a shower.

Cassie joined them for breakfast but she was still half asleep but didn't go as far as to complain that she'd rather be in bed. The last time she had done that Janet had taken her up on her words. She had sent their daughter back to bed which of course had caused a lot of whining and teenage drama. After breakfast Cassie and Sam cleaned up the kitchen. The rain was still coming down hard. So, they had to change their original plan of going for a hike in the Garden of the Gods. And Cassie talked Janet into going to the new mall at the outskirts of town. Sam sighed; going to the mall was not her idea of weekend fun.

Cassie tried to placate her with the information that she had heard there was a new electronics shop in the mall so well equipped that it would make everyone drool who's even remotely interested in computers and surveillance equipment and so on. So, she tried not to look too much like a martyr and even tried to feign some enthusiasm though neither Janet nor Cassie fell for it for a second.

After what seemed to Sam like hours and hours of window shopping they had lunch at the 'Olive Garden' in the mall. Cassie met a couple of friends and gladly abandoned her parents; and then it was time for Janet to sigh when Sam seemed to turn into a kid in a candy store as soon as they had found the electronics store, but Janet was in luck. Sam's initial enthusiasm lasted only a few minutes. The things they had to offer did in no way exceed the average until she found a big bin unobtrusively tucked away in a corner in the back. At first glance its contents looked like discarded spare parts. Sam took a closer look. As far as she could tell without trying it out for real, someone had modified standard components for increased speed, computing power, and - if she was not completely mistaken - safety. Sam started to empty the bin and sort the components. Janet was starting to get bored and began to browse through the DVDs, Blue-Rays and Box-Sets.

Sam found seven different modifications to a plug-in component. She put them in a shopping basket, draped the prize tag she had found at the bottom on the bin on top and went in search of Janet. She found her beloved doctor crouched next to a pile with children's DVDs, mostly of the Disney Franchise. Sam crouched down next to Janet, and asked,

"Do you need help to pick a video, Jan?"

"I don't think so, Samantha. I've narrowed it down to 'Daktari, season 1' and a deluxe edition of 'Fantasia'. And I do not really feel like choosing. We'll take them both. I see, you have also found something."

"I don't know for sure what it is yet, Jan, but someone went to a lot of trouble to modify basic components. I can't tell what those modifications do just yet; I'll have to test them first. What I don't get is why whoever made so many of them only to dispose of them in the back corner of a shop."

"And now you can't wait to bring them to your lab on base and find out what exactly those modifications do, but Sammy that will have to wait until at least tomorrow. I do not plan to let you out of my sight for rest of the day, Airman."

"Working with those things at the lab will be faster but I can start on them at home. I still have that old laptop packed away in the cupboard under the stairs."

"You can get to the first of your new toys at home, sweetie, but not more. I have plans for you and now let's go and pay for our bounty."

At the register they had to wait for a few minutes until it was their turn. Janet paid for the DVDs and Sam paid the '$ 6 a piece' the sign demanded for her new gadgets. She also learned that the owner of the shop who was at the moment standing behind the register had no idea where they had come from. He had found them at the door a few days ago in the bin with the prize tag weighed down by empty DVD cases on top of it. Sam gave the middle aged man with the crew cut a smile and asked him to send her a message should he ever find out more about the creator of those modified computer parts. She also handed him a slip of paper with her NORAD email address on it, she checked every other day to keep up the illusion that she was really working out of NORAD.

Back at home Sam took her shoes off and took her new toys to Janet's home office.

Janet smiled at her, but did not let her go without giving her a final order, "Airman Carter, I want you to present yourself in the bedroom at 18h30 sharp. So far, you have been a good girl today. Do not disappoint me now or later."

"Ma'am, no, Ma'am. I will do my best to be on time."

The computer parts Sam had bought did not fit into the body of the laptop she wanted to use to test them. So, she had to do a bit of creative engineering to make it work. The first modified part augmented the processor speed by 300 % and the second made it basically impervious to outside attacks. Whoever had come up with them was really brilliant. The design combined ingenuity with simplicity. Sam decided that she had to get to the bottom of this enigma. She looked at the computer chronometer and was relieved to see that she still had twenty minutes before Janet expected her upstairs. That was not enough time to test another of her toys. So, she put the laptop back in its bag, found a box for the rest of her gadgets and went upstairs.

"

Janet raised her gaze from the medical journal she was reading and smiled at her, "You're early, sweetie. That's very commendable. I hope you will not soon regret your eagerness. Yesterday, I promised that you would get the rest of your punishment for being late sometime today."

Janet stood up, took a seat on the chair standing in front of the vanity and ordered Sam to get over her knees. "I'll give you a nice thorough hand-spanking first to warm you up. Are you ready, Airman?"

"As ready as one can be even for a well-deserved punishment, Ma'am."

Janet smiled at Sam's words and her at the same time relaxed posture. In the beginning of their relationship as Top and Bottom Sam had tried to keep her body weight from resting on Janet by balancing her weight on her fingers and toes. But Janet had taught her that she loved to feel Sam's weight resting on her thighs and that it was a great way to gauge her reactions, without having to rely on vocalizations. Janet peppered Sam's backside with fast not too hard slaps and turned the pale skin into a dark shade of pink.

"That's enough for a warm-up, sweetie. It's time for your punishment, Airman. I want you to get up, put your wrist cuffs on, stretch your arms over your head and bend over the footrest of the bed. You said yesterday that you wanted to be caned for your transgression, but I think a session under the Lexan paddle will be enough. It stings a bit more than the hairbrush and leaves longer lasting marks, but it's not as hard to take as the cane."

Sam did as ordered while Janet went into their walk-in closet to get the paddle from their toy chest. The paddle was made of semi-transparent plastic. It had five holes drilled into it, forming the pattern of an x. Janet deposited the paddle on the mattress and caressed Sam's slightly burning dark pink buttocks. When she was sure that her beloved submissive was as relaxed as she was likely to get, she picked up the paddle and delivered the first stroke.

"By the way, Sammy. I want you to count."

Janet knew that using the Lexan paddle demanded high attention from the disciplinarian to every single of Sam's reactions. With forty-seven strokes to administer some bruising would be unavoidable, but if Sam moved the moment the paddle hit its target the holes would cause the skin to blister, and that was something Janet really wanted to avoid. She did not want to cause her Sam more pain than absolutely necessary to get her to let go of her guilt, unfortunately pain was most of the time the fastest way to get Sam to forgive herself.

Sam counted dutifully but after the twentieth stroke, Janet paused her punishment and once again put down the paddle. Instead of creating an intricate pattern with the marks left by the holes in the paddle, Janet busied herself with exploring Sam's skin with the tip of her fingers. She felt its tension and heat; felt how it reacted to her touch and patted the upper parts of her thighs before she resumed the paddling.

"You're doing well, Sammy. I want you to continue counting, but I do not want you to focus on that alone. I want you to let the pain in. Keep counting and allow yourself to feel."

Sam did not answer but did as ordered and from the twenty-first stroke on she started to flinch slightly with every new stroke, but she did not cry out or broke her assigned position. After the last stroke Sam thanked her Top for the punishment but did not get up because she had not yet been ordered to do so.

Then Janet said, "Get up, Airman and thank me properly and remove the wrist cuffs while you're at it."

"Sam obeyed without hesitation and moments later knelt in front of Janet, "Ma'am thank you for punishing my tardiness, Ma'am. Would you please take off the wrist cuffs as a sign of your forgiveness?"

"Yes, Sammy. And Airman Carter you are forgiven for having been late in picking up our daughter."

As soon as her wrists were free Sam stretched forward and kissed the back of Janet's hands; then she bent down and kissed her feet. She came back up again and smiled at Janet; she gave her one of those bright smiles she reserved for her family and her family only.

"Come up on the bed and join me, Samantha. Let's snuggle and cuddle a bit before we have to get ready for dinner. I reserved a table at the 'Onyx' for 20h00. It's either that or going back to play with your new toys."

"I'm not that blonde, Ma'am. I will not give up the chance to be with you and hold you or being held by you for the dubious pleasure of staring at a computer screen. There is nothing I love more than being with you, Janet, my love."

"You're such a sweet talker, my Sammy. Now, shut up and hop in."

Sam climbed into bed next to Janet and tried not to wince at the pain radiating from her chastised buttocks. She knew this punishment for having been late – again – would stay with her for the next few days. She knew she had deserved every single stroke and she knew that she had gotten off lightly because her Top was wise enough not to listen to her guilt-driven ideas. She probably would not have been able to walk without letting her pain show had she had to take the Lexan paddle and the cane as she had proposed. But Janet had decided otherwise; she had known better. Sam pushed her front against Janet's side, seeking contact with as much of her body as she could. She closed her eyes and replayed what had happened since Janet's return from the virology conference in Boston.

When she had knelt down in the corner of their bedroom she had felt like such a failure, such a huge disappointment to her Mistress; but Janet had put things in perspective. She had showed her with every word, every gesture that things were not as bleak as she saw them; and yet she had not let her get away with it. She had been duly punished, still was, would be punished because there still was another high heel training session to get through, but that was alright. Sam opened her eyes again. Her head was resting on Janet's shoulder in a reversal of their usual sleeping position. She looked up and saw that her beloved Top, her Mistress was smiling.

"Janet?"

"Yes, sweetie?"

"Thank you, thank you for always giving me what I need and for not letting me get away with breaking our rules. I love you, my Janet."

"You're welcome, Sam-mine. I love you as well and I will always be there to give you what you need, not necessarily what you think you need but what I know you need. Sam, if I had asked you on Friday to list your transgressions not in chronological order but in order of severity, starting with the biggest offence, what would you have said?"

"In descending order of severity: Being late in picking up Cassie, sitting on the couch three times, wearing shoes in the house, twice."

"And that's where we disagree. If I had listed your transgressions in order of severity, I would have regarded wearing shoes in the house as a more important transgression than using the living room furniture without permission. And as your Top my opinion is the only one that counts."

"I don't understand, Ma'am. Why is wearing shoes more offensive than sitting on the couch? Many people who are not at all submissive do not wear shoes in their houses or apartments."

"That's true, but with them it's just a quirk it's not a rule it does not mean anything and it does not have unpleasant consequences. Or they do it because they are neat freaks and don't want outside dirt being carried into their clean home. For us it means a lot that you don't wear shoes in the house. It's a sign that you are mine, not only in our bedroom but all the time. It's like our inspection ritual; it shows my power over you and that gives me an incredible thrill.

"Not letting you use the couch without permission, on the other hand was quite a thrill in the beginning, but that got old very quickly. You and I are such a perfect fit as Top and Bottom because you do not need to be micromanaged. I do not have to turn every little thing into an order; most of the time you know what I want and do it before I can make it into an order. I have even considered giving you a blanket permission to use every piece of furniture we own whenever you want; and only make you use the floor when for one reason or another I'd rather have you at my feet than at my side. What would you say to that?"

"Can I think about it, Janet?"

"Of course, sweetie, take all the time you need. But with your answer I also want you to tell me why you needed time to think, and as much as I like snuggling with you: We'll have to get up now and get ready for dinner or we will be late for our reservation. I want you to wear the red dress; it's a perfect fit for the high heels."

"Yes, Ma'am, thank you for getting the last part of my punishment out of the way."

"You're welcome, sweetie."

Sam and Janet were still in the shower when Cassie stopped by on her way to her teacher's home rehearsal. Janet asked her if she wanted the leftovers from last night's Irish stew, but Cassie declined, reminding her parents that Mister Baker had said that he would make barbecue for everyone with his mother's famous Tex-Mex sauce. Janet told her that Monday was a school day and that she should not stay too long.

Sam's red dress was a perfect fit to the high heels. She used Mascara and a hint of eye shadow to let her large eyes appear even bigger. Janet handed her a lipstick of the same color than her dress and shoes. Sam put it on while Janet closed the padlocks of the heels. They walked the two and a half blocks to the 'Onyx', an upscale restaurant that had been opened only a couple of months ago and was fast on its way to become a favorite of the city's rich and mighty. Janet had reserved a table for that night long before she had left for the conference in Boston.

At the entrance Janet stopped Sam and whispered in her ear, "Tonight you will be my little Lady, Sam-mine. I will order for both of us and I will pay the check, my beautiful Major. I will allow our waiter or the Maitre D' to seat you but after that it's my turn."

Sam had to coral all of her instincts to keep herself from opening the door for Janet as she usually would, instead she whispered, "Thank you, Ma'am."

"You're welcome, Sammy."

Dinner was wonderful and they stayed longer than Janet had initially planned. When it was time to choose a dessert, their waiter, a shy, acne-scared young man listed the possibilities: different kinds of ice cream, three kinds of cheese cake, crème Brule, but when he mentioned double chocolate cake as that day's special, Sam's eyes started to shine, and Janet was happy to indulge her beloved.

Janet made sure that Sam got an extra big piece of chocolate cake and convinced their waiter to pack up another one for their daughter. She had crème Brule as dessert accompanied by a double Espresso. Janet paid and they left to go home. Per chance there was a Taxi outside and Janet took it for the drive home. When Sam wanted to climb in, Janet stopped her and ordered her to run home instead.

"Samantha, I know you want out of those shoes and the fastest way to get what you want is to hurry home as fast as you can. I do not just want you to walk fast I want you to do your best to run. Just imagine that it's not in the middle of the night but that you are out for your morning run. Understood?"

"Yes, Ma'am, I'll try to run and not break an ankle in the process."

"Very good, Airman, you're making me very proud."

"Thank you, Ma'am."

Sam waited until the taxi was out of sight and started to jog, slowly. She was not confident enough to go faster. But still it was faster than walking fast would have been. The closer she came to their home the more confidence Sam gained. She picked her pace up a bit and as if to mock her she stumbled over an uneven patch on the sidewalk. But she also was lucky and regained her balance without falling or twisting an ankle. After that her inner voice told her to be careful and walk the rest of the way, but that voice did not stand a chance against her need to earn her Mistress' praise. Janet had said that she was proud of her, but Sam wanted to give her a reason to be proud.

Janet was waiting on the porch when Sam hurried along the drive way,

"You did well, sweetie, and now let's take off those shoes. You are forgiven for having worn shoes in the house. Your debt has been paid."

Sam knelt down and kissed Janet's hands and feet, "Thank you, Ma'am for being so generous and wise."

"You're exaggerating, Samantha. And now, let's see if the Prodigal daughter has returned home yet."

She had not; the living room was empty and so was her room and Janet's office. Janet put Cassie's piece of cake in the kitchen and Sam inserted the first 'Daktari' CD into the player. Janet settled on the couch and Sam leaned against her feet. They were well into the second episode when Cassie came home.

Mr. Baker's barbeque had been a success and they still had managed to work on a few difficult scenes and Cass was already looking forward to the next official session at school at the end of the week, which also would be their first dress rehearsal with full lights and effects. Doing the first dress rehearsal at the end of the week, instead of as initially planned at the beginning, would give the school administrators enough time to repair the leak in the auditorium. They exchanged a few pleasantries about the BBQ and Janet and Sam's dinner outing. Janet asked Cassie if she wanted to eat the chocolate cake before going to bed.

"I'm full, Mom, will the cake keep 'til tomorrow?"

"I ate a piece at the restaurant. It's wonderfully juicy. I see no problem with it keeping 'til tomorrow, Cassie. It should be still as good then," Sam answered.

Cassie went to bed and the two women followed shortly after when they had watched the second episode to its end. Sam snuggled under the cover next to Janet after Janet had inspected the marks from the paddle and the by now very faint traces of the flogger on her back.

Sam pulled Janet against her side and whispered before she closed her eyes, "Thank you for a wonderful evening, Janet. It was perfect."

"No, sweetie, you were perfect."

"I love you, Janet."

"And I love you, Samantha."

A few minutes later, Janet was just about to drift off into dreamland, Sam asked, "Janet?"

"Yes, sweetie? What's up ? Do you need anything?"

"No, Janet. It's just, that question you had about the couch use, I have an answer now. My first instinct was to say that we should get rid of that rule, the sooner the better, but then I thought that this would not be such a good idea; it would not add to my to our live , from my point of view it would make it poorer. I like the fact that I can't just sit on the couch whenever I want to. I like that even something as basic as that is not up to me but to you. It's like not wearing clothes in the bedroom without your permission. Tangible proof that you are the guiding light of my life, always.

"If it were up to me I would leave the general rule in place that I'm not allowed to use the couch and the armchair in the living room without your permission, but that we add a sort of caveat that I'm allowed on the couch in times of great emotional stress, for instance after another horrible mission. I would of course let you know about it and give my reasons for breaking the general rule and then it would be up to you to decide if you accept my reasoning, If you do I'll get away with it if not I will be punished accordingly. What do think? Would you be able to accept this modification of our rules?"

Janet bent over and stretched a bit and put a quick kiss in the tip of Sam's nose, "Oh, Sammy, and they say that Daniel is the talker and the diplomat of SG-1, they have no idea about the real extent of your talents. You're such a sweet talker, Major Carter. I think, it's a great idea, sweetie, and I know that you will not misuse your new privilege. I'll add it as an amendment to our rules tomorrow morning when you're out on your run."

"Thank you, Janet. Your acceptance and permission mean a lot to me. May I kiss you. Ma'am?"

"Of course, my love. I always want to be kissed by you, sweetie."

"Thank you, Ma'am."

Sam's kiss was neither tentative nor explorative. It was passionate and demanding, just the kind of kiss Janet usually gave Sam. And for once Janet enjoyed being claimed by her beloved astrophysicist; she was far from passive but she did not try to turn the tables and take over as she often did. She cherished the feeling of Sam's tongue exploring her mouth, Sam's hand running along her right flank, her other hand rubbing her breast and rolling her nipple between thumb and index finger. The street light falling through the bedroom window showed her the intense expression on Sam's face. She was focused as if she were running an extremely important experiment and at the same time there was that intense expression of wonder in her eyes just as if she could not really believe that Janet was all hers. Sam played Janet's body expertly and after bringing her to more than one earth-shattering orgasm Janet returned the favor with similar intensity and both women once again went tp work with a wide smile on their face and far less sleep than they had intended to get.

* * *

 **4\. Jean Mckay**

The next day during their lunch break Sam asked Janet if she had plans for the evening. When Janet said that she had nothing special in mind, Sam told her that she wanted to stay in her lab after the end of her shift to test the other computer components. Janet told her that she should do it and take all the time she needed.

The third component Sam tested did not improve the safety or speed it automatically compressed and decompressed all data. The fourth board Sam tried did not much of anything special, but with a bit of experimentation Sam found out that it was meant to encrypt and decrypt data just as the other one compressed and decompressed data automatically. The next one combined increased speed with increased safety and number six added increased speed to automatic compression and decompression and the last one worked with automated encryption, but that was also not of much help in operating a computer. The encryption codes used were sophisticated but no match for Sam's skills and because they were deeply embedded in the hard ware they treated everything the same way. So, unfortunately it was not flexible enough to safely hide anything.

Sam left the mountain two and a half hours after the end of her shift. Janet was still in the infirmary. SG-5 had come in with wounded though they had not come in hot and Janet's services were direly needed. Sam made a stop at the electronics store after she had told the other SG scientists about her new toys and they all wanted at least one of the first three for themselves. The bin with the parts was still were she had left it but the "6 $ sign" had been taped to the rim. Sam took a marker and put a "1" in front of the six. When she was done pulling out parts for her family and her colleagues there were only about a score pieces left.

The boy manning the register called his boss from the office. She asked him if he still had her calling card and reminded him to send an email should he see hide or hair of the mysterious builder. He promised to do that. He also promised to keep a separated record of every piece sold and to only keep 10 % as a fee for himself. The next morning she ordered one of her people to draw some blueprints of the modifications and called an acquaintance at the local patent office.

He had enough clearance to know that what they were doing deep in the bowels of Cheyenne Mountain was highly classified, but he had no idea that they could establish stable wormholes to other planets. He was thrilled when he found out that this time he would not have to make a secret out of what Sam had for him, but was a bit stymied when she told him that she had no idea who the inventor was and to leave that part blank for the time being but to expedite the acceptance of the patent on a National and International scale.

About two weeks later Sam received an email from the owner of the electronics store. The mysterious computer modifier had left another care package at the front door of the store but this time a surveillance camera in the corridor of the shopping center had caught the young woman on film. The resolution, even after Sam had gone over it with the FBI's terrorist identification tools, was not good enough to run a facial recognition program, but Sam checked it manually against missing persons' reports from the US and Canada and soon was pretty sure that she had found something; A young woman from Canada.

She was eighteen and a half and working on her PhD in theoretical Astrophysics. Her parents had filed a missing persons report almost five weeks prior when she had not returned from an evening class. Her name was Jean Elizabeth Mckay, called "Jeannie." Now, all Sam had to do was to confirm her hunch and find the girl. She also hoped that she was not such a know-it-all-better, pain in the ass as her big brother Rodney McKay. Finding the young woman was a bit more intricate. Operating on the assumption that the runaway was not swimming in money, Sam, a few Marines and a couple of SFs checked every shelter and cheap motel and Hotel and B & B in Colorado Springs and around town without any success, but then Lady Luck was on her side.

One day a week after she had received the email from the electronics' store Sam was in a store doing the grocery shopping for them. Grocery shopping was not something Sam usually did on her own or voluntarily, but they needed supplies and Janet had to pull a double shift first at the mountain and then at the Academy hospital, due to a nasty wave of the cold that had taken out half of the nursing staff including the doctors, and residents. In the morning before leaving for work Janet had given Sam a list and now Sam tried not to get lost in the aisles. She had just passed the aisle with the different brands and flavors of Cereals on one side and pasta on the other when she spotted 'Jeannie' at the other side of the shop in front of the frozen meals, ready to be put in the microwave.

Sam tried to keep her in her peripheral vision while she put the rest of the items on the list in her shopping card. The young woman had just a few items in her basket when she went to stand in line at the register. Sam came to stand in the same line with three other costumers between them. Jeannie McKay paid cash. Sam used her credit card and hurried to her car to put her purchases away and at the same time keep an eye on the young Canadian who seemed to be in walking distance to wherever she was staying. In this part of town the sidewalks were not busy enough to blend in with the crowd; so, following her on foot might become tricky.

The same was true for taking the car, but Sam still decided to take that risk, because she logically deduced, sooner or later she would have to tell her that she had recognized her from the mall's security footage and why she had been looking for her. Jean was just rounding the corner to a side street when Sam rolled out of the shop's parking lot. Sam waited at the corner and observed while Jeannie entered a house with a weeping willow in the garden. Sam deduced that she had to stay with friends of the family and speculated what the young woman could have told them to keep them from contacting her parents. Sam parked the Volvo in the driveway, got out and rang the bell at the front door. Nothing happened. She rang again and then started to knock. Between knocks she heard someone moving inside. So, Sam decided to call out to her.

"Jean Elizabeth Mckay. I know you're in there. I followed you from the store. Please open the door, I'd like to talk to you."

"What the heck makes you think that I would want to talk to you, Lady? And what gives you the right to stalk me from the store?" Was the shouted answer from the other side of the door.

For Sam that was a sure sign that now she had to do some damage control. "My name is Samantha Carter. I'm sorry for intruding. I saw your work at the Electronics store in the new mall. And just now at the grocery store I recognized you from the footage the surveillance cameras at the mall took of you when you left your second package there."

"And you ran a facial recognition program to find out who I am and probably already called my parents and told them where to find their wayward daughter. I know I should have left that stuff in the garage. Are you with the Police?"

"No, Miss Mckay. I'm not with the police. I found your modified components Sunday before last in a corner at the Electronics store in the mall everything else they had was just boring standard equipment. The designs intrigued me and I bought a few to check them out at my lab. Some of the changes you made are really impressive; I would have never thought of doing it like this. And I know a thing or two about computers."

"What makes you think that I had anything to do with the modifications?" Jeannie had pushed the curtains behind the glass panels of the door aside and now looked Sam in the eyes. "You said, you're name is Samantha Carter, Doctor Samantha Carter? The picture on the book cover does not do you justice."

"You read my book? And I thought only a handful of specialists who probably think that I have too much imagination ever even opened it. After all, even if my theories one day would prove to be right there is no power source on Earth strong enough to create or store enough energy to create a stable worm hole and keep it open."

"That about sums up what my Professor said, but that man is as boring and conservative as they get. If he had lived in an earlier time he would have seen air planes as witchcraft and a work of the Devil or something like this. And probably would have the Wright brothers burned at the stake. Would you like to come in and sign it for me?"

"It would be my pleasure, Miss McKay."

"Please call me Beth or Jean."

"I'm Sam."

"The kitchen is to your right, Sam. I'll get the book from the guest room. There's orange juice in the fridge if you want something to drink."

Sam thanked her but the young woman was already gone. But it did not take her long to return with the thick volume. She held out the book and an old fashioned fountain pen.

"What do you want me to write?"

"I do not care, as long as you don't make it out to 'Jeannie'. I don't mind it from my parents, but my brother only uses it to belittle me. But how should you understand that.

"You do not have the world's biggest pain in the behind as a brother, Meredith McKay, self-proclaimed specialist in everything."

"Meredith? The missing persons' file I read said that your brother's name is Rodney."

"His name is Meredith Rodney McKay but he only goes by Rodney because he thinks that Meredith sounds too feminine and would ruin his chances with women. Not that his attitude would not ruin the chances he might have with every self-respecting woman with even half a brain as soon as he opens his mouth."

"My older brother also used to tell me that I know nothing of anything. He's five years older and he used to drive me crazy until I found out that the math homework he could not do was boring and easy for me."

"I never got to do Merey's homework. He's nineteen years older and was long at college before I came along. But even if it had been possible and he would not have been able to do it alone, he would never have accepted any help: He's just too know-it- all for that."

"Nineteen years are a big age difference for siblings with the same parents."

"My mother was barely out of High school when she had Merey. I also had an older sister who was only six years Merey's junior. Her name was Esther. She died of Leukemia when she was ten. I was more or less an afterthought of my parents, and Merey never forgave me that I could not really take her place."

"Why don't we stop talking about Rodney McKay and his unreasonable fear of blonde women and you tell me what are you doing here?"

"To make a long story short. I recently became aware that theoretical Astrophysics does no longer fascinate me as much as it once did and that I need to find something more practical to do with my time; something that engages my head and my hands; something with practical applications. I told everyone on Campus who needed to know that I was taking some time off. I needed to get my head free, and I could not do that at home with my parents' expectations constantly looming over me and breathing down my neck. And I knew that they would never look for me here.

"This is my aunt's house. They don't know that I know where my aunt lives or that we have been in contact via email and Skype. My mother and her younger sister are estranged since Aunt Silvia decided to follow her heart to North America, instead of finishing her studies at home."

"So, your parents despise the US?" Sam asked.

"No, on the contrary. My Father has an American flag in the front yard he religiously takes down every evening and pulls back up every morning. Except for National Canadian Holidays; then he uses a Canadian flag. When I was younger I thought that they simply did not like homosexuals, but that wasn't it either. My parents did not understand that Silvia's heart told her that she only could be happy when she did what her lover ordered her to do. My mother could not stand the thought that her tough little sister wanted to live her submissive needs. They have not spoken in the last two and a half decades or more."

"And have you come to a decision since you've been here?"

"Yes, and no."

"Yes, I will go back and finish my doctorate in the next trimester. Playing with the discarded computer parts I found in the garage I learned that just sitting in an office or a lab all day can not make me happy. I need to do something practical, solving a problem on a screen or on paper is fun but I also need the satisfaction to know that what I do works, that it serves a purpose. But I do not have any concrete plans just yet."

They continued talking for the next few hours. Sam found that she genuinely liked the bright young woman who seemed to have nothing of her brother's abrasiveness. She also learned that her Aunt and her partner at the moment were in Africa with 'Doctors without borders' but that they checked at least once a week to make sure that Jean was alright and had everything she needed. Jean did not want to live off her aunt's money and had taken a part-time job at a local repair shop for computers that earned her more than enough to cover her expenses. When it was starting to get dark Sam excused herself and returned home to put her purchases away.

Cassie helped her to put them in the fridge and pantry and decided that it was time to try her hand at Janet's pasta sauce. On a whim Sam invited Jean to come over and the young woman accepted. Cassie's attempt at cooking was surprisingly good and Sam teased her that she should do that more often. Jean and Cassie hit it off and exchanged email addresses, Skype names and phone numbers.

* * *

 **5\. Epilogue**

Sam was already in bed but not yet asleep when Janet returned from her double shift. Sam greeted her with a passionate kiss and told her that she had found the young woman for whom half the base had been looking, and that they had dinner together and that she liked her and wanted to help her find her way between theoretical astrophysics and practical engineering, but that she did not want to impose.

"You think she would be a good fit for the Stargate program, Sam?" Janet asked.

"I don't know yet, Jan. She's only eighteen. She still has a lot of time to decide what's really important in her life. Her priorities might radically change if she finds the right boy or girl. But I admit I was tempted to tell her that I have had the dubious pleasure of seeing her hard-headed brother in action. Whatever she decides I can't make that decision for her. She has enough people in her life who are all too willing to do that. She told me that her parents have a long list of research grants they want her to win and I have no doubt that she could do it if she really put her mind to it. She's brilliant and she does not feel the need to repeat that every five minutes to everyone who does not want to hear it."

"Do you think she would be interested in joining the US Air Force?"

" I think she's too much of a scientist to follow the military chain of command, but the longer the SGC is working the more Civilian scientists become part of our operations. Time will tell. How was your day, Jan?"

"Nothing out of the ordinary the shift at the Hospital was quiet and my time at the mountain was mostly routine. A post-mission physical for SG-6 and a pre-mission exam for SG-10 and SGT. Siler hurt his hand with a wrench. Not half as exciting as yours, sweetie. What did you order for dinner?"

"Nothing, Jan. Cass decided that she would try to copy your pasta sauce. It did not taste like yours but it was quite good. There's still some left if you're hungry. It only needs a bit of time on the stove or in the microwave, we even have pasta left, just enough for one person. Are you hungry?"

"As a doctor I should know better than wanting to eat before I go to bed, but I'm starving, sweetie? Would you come down with me?"

"Of course, my Jan. Would you like some wine with your dinner?"

"No, Sammy, just some juice and a bit of salad if we have any."

"Juice and salad, coming up," answered Sam, jumped out of bed, slipped some clothes on and preceded Janet to the kitchen.

Sam set the table and Janet took the pasta out of the fridge and put it in a frying pan with a bit of oil. Sam poured the rest of the pasta sauce in a bowl put a small plate on top and put it in the microwave. She filled a glass with apple juice and took a diet coke for herself and then she took a seat at the table facing Janet's and waited. The microwave pinged and Sam put the bowl on the table with a serving spoon. In the meantime Janet had finished up heating the pasta and asked Sam if she was sure that she did not want anything. Sam said that she was sure and instead devoured Janet with her eyes as if she had not seen her in months.

When everything but the juice and a tiny rest of the sauce was gone Janet asked, "Is anything wrong, sweetie? You look at me so intensely, it's almost scary. Did anything happen today you have not told me yet?"

Sam's eyes widened in surprise, "No, Ma'am, it's just that every time I look at you I ask myself what I could possibly have done right in a former life to win you as my partner and Top? It must have been rather monumental."

"You think, Sammy? Why? I'm not that special." Janet's answer broke Sam's mostly playful mood and suddenly made her feel the depth of her love for her wife, her Mistress, though she was not allowed to call Janet that.

"I beg to differ, Major Janet Fraiser, m. d. You are very special. You are a brilliant doctor with outstanding bedside manners, you are a great mother to a difficult teenager. You are very beautiful, you have a wicked sense of humor, you are consequent and firm and loving and forgiving. And for reasons unfathomable you chose to share all of you with me. I have a temper, I tend to get lost in my work, I turn every kitchen into a disaster zone if told to produce something edible. I'll probably never learn how to be on time and still you put up with me and give me what I need to combat my feelings of inadequacy, not what I think I need to let go of my guilt. You just know better, even though I sometimes have a hard time to accept that. I love you, Janet Fraiser, so much."

While talking Sam had stood up and walked around the table to Janet's side. She got down on her knees, took Janet's left hand and reverently kissed its back and put her head in Janet's lap. Janet put her other hand on Sam's head and started to play with the short strands. "I love you as well, sweetie, Sammy, Sam-mine, My major. I could get a head too big to fit through the door if I listen to your flattery too long, Samantha."

Sam lifted her head just enough to be clearly understood, "Flattery is rarely based in facts, rarely proven and tested. I'm just telling the truth as I see it. You are all I said and so much more, my love, my Janet, my – I'm going to say it even if you punish me – my Mistress."

"Oh, Sammy! You are one of a kind," Janet answered with a bright smile but also with a small tear clinging in the corner of her eye. "Get up, it's bedtime for Majors we both have to work tomorrow. Come, help me clean up the kitchen, and no you will not be punished for using the forbidden word, but do not make a habit of letting it slip during a conversation. I might not be as generous the next time or as mellowed by your sweetness, Airman Carter."

Sam answered with a crisp "Ma'am, yes, Ma'am", but did not remove her head from Janet's lap. Kneeling on the kitchen floor next to Janet felt so good, so right, Sam did not want to move. But Janet simply pushed the chair back and Sam had no choice but to follow the not too subtle hint and get up.

They filled the dishwasher and cleaned up quickly and with an ease born out of long practice. Sam undressed at the door to the bedroom and climbed into bed next to Janet, but they did not go to sleep. They touched and stroked and kissed and made love. Sam was tired when she went for her morning run the next day but she still made good time and finished the longer track in slightly less than an hour.

* * *

 **THE END**


End file.
